The Cleveland Cavaliers have agreed to acquire guard Lonzo Ball from the Chicago Bulls for forward Isaac Okoro according to a person with knowledge of the agreement.

The person spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity Saturday because the trade can not be finalized until the start of the new league year July 6.

Ball, out of Chino Hills High and UCLA, averaged 7.6 points, 3.4 rebounds and 3.3 assists in 35 games this past season after missing the 2022-23 and 2023-24 campaigns because of a left knee injury.

The 27-year old Ball underwent a meniscus and cartilage transplant in his left knee in March 2023 after two surgeries failed to fix an injury he suffered during his first season in Chicago in 2021-22.

Ball, the second overall pick by the Lakers in the 2017 draft, missed the last two months of the season because of a sprained right wrist. He has one year remaining on his contract with a team option for the 2026-27 season.

Okoro averaged 6.1 points and 2.4 rebounds this past season and is a strong defender who can also shoot well from the perimeter. However, he found his playing time begin to decrease over the season. He averaged 14.2 minutes in the playoffs after logging 19.1 minutes per game in the regular season.

BATUM nixes option

Nicolas Batum, the widely popular French forward, declined his $4.9 million player option with the Clippers and reportedly will become a free agent. It is believed that the NBA veteran will negotiate a new deal to stay in Los Angeles.

Batum, 36, has repeatedly said he wants to stay with the Clippers, where he has made an impact with his versatile defense and floor spacing in a limited role.

He averaged 4.0 points and 2.8 rebounds in 17.5 minutes off the bench, while shooting 43.7% from the field and a career-high 43.3% from 3-point range.

In the first-round series against the Denver Nuggets, Batum proved even more valuable as his playing time increased by nearly seven minutes a game from the regular season, and he contributed 5.6 points, 3.9 rebounds, 2.0 assists and 1.7 blocks.

Batum was with the Clippers from 2020-23 until they included him in the trade that brought James Harden from the Philadelphia 76ers early in the 2023-24 season. He returned to Los Angeles on a two-year deal that featured a player option last summer, reuniting two sides that never wanted to part.

— Janis Carr

MITCHELL STAYING PUT

Guard Davion Mitchell is coming back to the Miami Heat on a two-year contract worth $24 million, a person familiar with the negotiations said.

Mitchell — who the Heat consider to be one of the best on-ball defenders in the league — was traded to Miami in February as part of the deal that sent Jimmy Butler to the Golden State Warriors. Mitchell appeared in 30 regular-season games with the Heat, started 15 of them and averaged 10.7 points in those contests.

He averaged 15 points in Miami’s four playoff games this past season.

The Heat are his third team after stints in Sacramento and Toronto. He was the No. 9 overall pick in 2021 by the Kings out of Baylor.